


Across the Universe

by whoviangoesthere



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Flower Shop & Tattoo Parlor, Alternate Universe - Reality Show, Alternate Universe - Rock Band, Christmas, F/M, Heist, I promise, Secret Santa, christmas heist, queercandlenights secret santa, there's a LOT of AUs here, they're all really fun
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-23
Updated: 2018-12-23
Packaged: 2019-09-25 12:54:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,527
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17121761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whoviangoesthere/pseuds/whoviangoesthere
Summary: Lup thought she'd seen it all when it came to her travels on the Starblaster.  That was until the Light of Creation started getting its own ideas.  Ideas about where she belongs.  Ideas about her and a certain blue jeans wearing companion of hers.  And as she navigates the new twists and turns that the Light has in mind, she has to confront new challenges.  Like how in the hell she's going to deal with her growing feelings towards a certain someone that has a habit of following her throughout time and space.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This first chapter is simply the set up. The Blupjeans comes later - I promise.

              The first time the Light separates them, Lup freaks.

              She wakes up thinking she’s still on the _Starblaster_.  Davenport had just finished setting the course the night before.  Told everyone to get some sleep, they’d all be in the new plane the next morning.

              So when she rolls out of bed and nudges Taako awake, only to find him not there, she freaks.

              “Taako?” she calls out, blinking sleep from her eyes.  She blinks harder.  His bed isn’t there.  _Nothing_ is there.  Not the bed, not the room, not anything. She’s standing in a small open room, a twin bed – foreign to her even though she just got out of it – sitting behind her.  Around her, posters of skulls and random bands coat the walls.  A small desk sits in the opposite corner, a closet behind it, and two doors.

              “Is this…?”

              She steps forward.  The old floorboards creak underneath her.  There’s a radiator by the window.

              _The window._

Instantly, Lup rushes to it, peering outside.  The trees leaves are changing color, dropping their dead ones down onto a few meandering paved walkways.  There are a few other buildings, all centered around a center area.

              _A quad._

              “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

              Lup grabs her stone of far speech, only to find it missing from her pocket.  She breathes hard.

              _Okay.  I’m in a college._ I’m _in college.  Where is everybody else?_

              A furious pounding on the door makes Lup jump.

              “Aren’t you coming to class?” a voice yells from the other side.  She doesn’t recognize it.

              “Yeah!” she manages.  “Just…give me a second!”

              The voice sighs loudly.

              “This is like the third time you’ll be late, Lup!  Why are you - ”

              Lup storms across the tiny dorm room and yanks the door open.  In front of her, a nervous looking student stares up at her tall and skinny frame.  He’s unassuming.  Bland, even.  And, like his voice, completely unrecognizable.

              Lup takes a deep breath.

              “What month is it?” she asks calmly.

              “Um…October?  October the 5th?”

              “Uh huh.  And how long have I been here?”

              The student blinks at her.

              “Um…since September?  You moved here late August?  I’m your neighbor?  Lup, are you - ”

              She slams the door in his face, pressing her back to it.

              _I’m a college student who’s been here for a month, and I can’t remember any of it._

              Gods, she wishes Davenport were here.  He’d be able to explain this planar nonsense to her.  The best she can figure is the Light fucked up.  Big time.  And for some reason it landed her here.  In college.  With an annoying neighbor.

              She walks to the window and looks out again.  Either she failed her wisdom saving throw or that school outside is very much real.

              _If it’s real, and I’m here, then that must mean everyone else is here too._

              She just had to find them.

****

              It takes time.  And in the meantime, Lup takes the classes.

              She refuses to submit any assignments or take any exams.  She figures she’ll be gone from this plane by the time they are even graded.  But she owes it to the Starblaster crew to learn all she can about the plane she’s on.

              Some of them are actually enjoyable.  The gender studies is especially interesting, as this plane doesn’t even have a concept of gender, and most of the class is spent as more of a philosophical debate.  Lup leans back in her chair and revels in the chaos.

              And during her free time, she looks for the others.

              She finds it’s a smaller school, which is supposed to make things easier, but it doesn’t.  She checks all the usual haunts that she remembers back from her early IPRE days – the gym, the library, the shared kitchens in every dorm she can access.  She figures she must be missing them by a moment.  She doesn’t want to admit an alternative.

              A month goes by.  Her neighbor is named Eric, and he’s actually an okay guy.  She hangs out with him when she’s lonely, talks about what she can without revealing the truth.  And one day, he invites her to a party.

              “It’ll be really cool!” he encourages her.  “You’ve always been super chill, Lup; you’ll love it.”

              She figures, what the hell, she deserves one night to get drunk and forget about the fact that her family is missing.  So she goes.

              The party is wild.  Lup goes crazy.  The next thing she knows she’s dancing in a mosh pit, music blaring, and she throws her arm out and collides with something hard.

              She recovers, and turns.  The man she hit is fumbling around on the ground for his glasses, but the blood spilling from his nose isn’t helping the situation.  Lup grabs the closest thing she can find – the denim jacket off of a nearby chair – and stoops to help soak up the blood.  The man narrows his eyes at the jacket as he leans his head back.

              “I think that’s mine,” he says, his voice nasally and strained.  Lup blushes and helps him away from the dancing, scooping his glasses from off the floor.

              “Thanks, I guess.”

              He puts them on.  He focuses on her.

              “Barry?!” Lup screams.

              “Lup!” he replies, and they’re hugging, so tightly that Lup doesn’t care that there’s blood all over her clothes.

****

              After that, it’s like someone gives her True Sight.  Barry’s roommate is Magnus.  His botany professor is Merle.  They find Lucretia buried in a book, in the third floor of the library where nobody, not even Lup, goes.

And Taako.  Taako they find off campus, pursuing the rumor of a gourmet cheese shop in the town next door.

They cry and hug and reunite in the most picturesque way possible.

              “Where’s Davenport?” Lup asks, once things have calmed down.  “I never could find him.”

              Lucretia sighs and shrugs her shoulders.

              “I don’t know.  But together, we might be able to.”

              They can’t.  They search and search, but their streak of luck seems to run dry.

              Instead, they gather themselves and form the team that they are.  They keep attending classes.  Lup introduces Eric to all of her family.

              As December comes and goes, they risk taking a vacation to the slopes nearby.  They celebrate Candlenights one gnome short, but they celebrate nonetheless.

              When January arrives, they all have letters in their inbox, and suddenly they all know what majors this plane has in store for them.

              “How can Magnus get his major in ‘woodworking’?  That’s not even a proper major!”

              “Not on our plane, it isn’t.  Here?”

              Merle spends the time laughing quietly at the others.

              “I don’t have to get a major.  I’m already a certified professor!”

              “Yes we _know_ , Merle,” Lup groans.

              “Hey, smart guy, you’re also the only one getting _paid_!” Taako calls over, after smirking at his “Culinary Arts” letter.  “Why don’t you buy the drinks tonight?”

              Four other voices rise up in agreement.  Merle complains but laughs anyway.

              The months move on.  Each one of them focuses more and more on their studies, as if they miss college back on their own plane.  Eventually, summer break appears.  They all collectively skip the exams and take the opportunity to finally wander further off campus, out of the state, down the coast.

              Where, upon searching for a boat that they can take for a pleasure cruise, they find Davenport, tending to the _Starblaster_ , which is sitting beautifully in the harbor.

****

              Davenport has already found the Light of Creation, and he has spent the school year examining it and what it does to his crew on this plane.  He doesn’t have any clear answers.  But the best he figures is that the Light, and the planes, and the bonds, and the _Starblaster_ herself are acting up, and for the next few cycles, they’ll be stuck in this situation.

              “You mean, separated?” Taako asks quietly.  “Like we were here?”

              Davenport shrugged.

              “We could be.  We could be together, like Barry and Magnus.  Something’s trying to put us into the world as if we belonged there already.  I…I don’t know how long this will last.  So the best we can do is weather it, just like everything we’ve faced.”

              They compare tactics.  Plans.  They establish potential meeting points, places and times.  In the end, though, nobody is really certain.  And as they board the Starblaster and move on, Lup looks at Taako.  And she looks at Barry.  And she’s a little bit scared.


	2. Chapter 2

For the next plane, Taako isn’t there with Lup.

              But Barry is.

              They find themselves sleeping in some sort of hotel, where each of them is awoken by someone hammering on their door that it’s showtime soon and they needed to get up.  They meet, bleary eyed, in the hotel lobby, and smile at each other.

              “What do you think they meant?” Barry asks, filling a styrofoam cup up with coffee.

              “No clue,” Lup answers, taking a bite out of a muffin.  “But I think we’re about to find out.”

              She nods over to the fat man in his 30s who is walking over to them, holding a clipboard and scowling.

              “Do you have _any_ idea how behind we are on filming?”

              Lup and Barry shrug in unison.

              “Well, come on, then.” He grabs both of their shoulders and starts directing them outside.  “The kitchen’s all prepped, you just have to meet the staff, do the usual - ”

              “Kitchen?” Lup asks.

              The man looks back at her.

              “Yeah, kitchen.  Where else do you film a cooking show?”

              Lup’s internal screams almost become external.  Barry just looks more confused.

              They are shuffled into the back of a trailer and they take off.  Lup grabs Barry’s shoulders, shaking him.

              “Barry, a _cooking show_!”

              “Yeah, Lup, it’s sort of cool.”

              “ _Sort of?_ ” Lup scoffs.  “What better way to upstage my brother than by beating him at his own game?”

              “You realize that _I_ am also on this show, right?  I don’t know how to cook _toast._ ”

              “That’s the fun of it, Barry!” Lup laughs.  Barry still seems hesitant, so Lup sits back down and holds out her hand.

              “Barry, I grew up with the world’s best chef.  I learned a thing or two from him.  I’ll help you.”

              Barry smiles at that.

              “It’ll make good entertainment.  Us working together.”

              “Yeah!”

****

              Thirty minutes later, they’re both standing in front of the studio.  It’s a huge open area, with two distinct kitchens on either side.  Above them, signs with their names.  Between them, the heart-sinking truth: VS.

              “You’ve gotta be kidding me,” Lup says.  Barry’s panicking.

              “Lup, I don’t know about this, I don’t think we should - ”

              “Alright you two.”  The fat man is back.  He’s smoking a cigar, and Lup wrinkles her nose at the smell.  “We’re live in five, so get your butts up on that stage and make some magic.”

              “I _really_ hope you mean literally,” Barry groans.

              The show begins, with each of them on opposite sides of the stage.  The announcer introduces the dish – apple galette – and starts the clock.

              Lup knows her way around a kitchen.  It’s what being Taako’s sister _means_.  Sure, his food was always just a smidge tastier than her own, cooked to a perfection.  But she knows how to make her own food too.  She learned from the best.

She focuses all her energy on rolling out the dough and cutting the apples.  She’s almost too busy layering them in to notice the smoke.

              But she notices it.

              Barry had apparently frantically shoved the apples into a half rolled dough pan and shoved it into the oven.  Needless to say the dough burns almost immediately, and a cloud of smoke starts to pour into the studio.  Barry stumbles back, stammering words, while some frantic attendant charges onto the stage with a fire extinguisher and goes to town.

              Lup immediately abandons her galette to run over to Barry and comfort him.  She’s halfway there when the fat man is back, shuffling them off stage while he shouts something about going to commercial.

              “What the fuck was that?!” the man yells.  Barry’s staring at the ground, mortified.  Lup puts a protective arm around his shoulder and scowls at the man.

              “He’s having a rough day!”

              “A rough _day_?  That dish was supposed to be the warm up!  It was supposed to be _easy_ , how did you fuck it up?”

              Barry starts to utter an apology but can barely murmur a sentence.  Lup notices tears in his eyes and grows more furious.

              “You want higher ratings?” she demands.  “Fine!  Put us together instead of against each other and watch the viewers soar!”

              “I - ”

              “Now if you’ll _excuse_ us, we need to prepare for tomorrow.”

              “B – but there’s more filming today!”

              Lup shoots him a glare worthy of setting the sun on fire.  He backs off enough for her to usher Barry off the set and into a dressing room.

              She hears the audible sniff of someone trying not to cry and she gently sits him down on the chair nearby.  She kneels in front of him as he stares at his lap.

              “He’s, um…” Another sniff.  “He’s right, Lup, that was something easy, I should have - ”

              “Noooo don’t you dare.” Lup takes his hand.  “ _He_ is an _asshole_ and you shouldn’t listen to anything he says.  You were panicked and didn’t know what to do.”

              “Yeah, but I - ”

              He closes his eyes.  Lup squeezes his hand.

              “I’m not you, or Taako.  I don’t have any talent here.  The Light made a mistake, it was supposed to be you and _Taako_ here, not me.”

              “Hey.” Lup reaches up and tilts Barry’s head so that he can see her.  “We’re gonna make this work, okay?”

              “But he said - ”

              “ _Fuck_ what he said.  Barry, you and I are going to work together on this and become the best team on this plane of existence.”

              Barry puts on a hesitant smile, and it’s all that Lup needs.

****

              Their manager – Lup assumes as much based on how horribly he treats them – fights the changes.  Lup takes the fight away from Barry, but she fights _hard_.  It lasts an hour, culminating in her setting fire to his clipboard.  He’s scared by that, and after a final death glare from Lup he finally agrees to the set up.

              The next day Lup and Barry walk onto set and see things have changed.  Instead of two smaller kitchens there’s one big one, with their names written in pretty cursive up above.  Their manager grumbles as they take their places in the kitchen.  The cameras go live.

              The announcer says they’ll be cooking risotto.  Lup smiles.  Barry doesn’t know what that is.

              “Remember a few planes back Taako and I made that really moist rice with vegetables in it?”

              “That stuff with garlic?” Barry close his eyes.  “Mmmm that was _so_ good.”

              “We’re making that now.”

              Barry’s eyes light up at the thought of making a dish he actually recognizes, and Lup laughs softly.  She guides him through each step slowly and carefully.  She adds the ingredients for the broth but lets Barry do the stirring.  She toasts the rice to relieve Barry the threat of burning the food.

              When they finally combine the broth and the rice, Lup sets the timer while Barry just stands there.  He inhales deeply.

              “This smells better than that time you made it,” he says, his voice lazy and filled with nostalgia.  “I think you outdid yourself, Lup.”

              “You helped me,” she responds as she stirs the risotto once more.  “Can you tell me if you think it’s done?”

              He peers down into the pan as she swirls it around.  He watches the creaminess move together fluidly, and as he focuses on it with the same focus he gives anything else he does, Lup begins to feel something in her.  Something warm.

              “I think it’s done.  It’s flowing slowly. That’s what it looked like last time.”

              Barry glances back up at her.  She’s still stirring.

              “Lup?”

              Lup snaps out of her trance and almost knocks the whole pan off the stove.

              “Yeah!  Yeah, that’s right, Barry, it’s…um…”

              Barry laughs as she recovers.  Somewhere far away, the timer for the show rings.  For a few blessed seconds, it’s just Lup and Barry, standing over some risotto, looking at each other.

              Then the announcer swoops onto the stage and serves the dish onto a few plates.  He tastes it and gives it a rating that seems to please the studio.  Lup doesn’t really care, but Barry seems genuinely happy that their dish did so well.  Lup picks up her plate and lifts it up to Barry’s.

              “Cheers!” she says.  Barry smiles and clinks his plate against hers.

****

              The show travels, and so do they.  The next night they’re booked into separate hotel rooms again, but Barry immediately comes to knock on Lup’s door.  Lup lets him in.  She’s watching a rerun of their show on the television, and as soon as he’s inside she plops back down on the bed.

              Barry stares at the TV for a few seconds before speaking up.

              “We, um…we make a pretty good team.  At least, um, that’s what the people watching us are saying.”

              “I told that asshole we’d work better together.  I am good.”

              “Yeah. You are.”

              There had been plenty of times before, on the Starblaster, when Barry had been to Lup’s tiny room, the one she shared with Taako.  After the first month on the ship there was no awkwardness.  Lup’s home was Barry’s, and vice versa.  They’d never thought twice about it.

              Now, Barry stands at the entrance, twiddling his thumbs and looking around like a scared rabbit.  Like he’s never done this before.

              “What are you standing there for?” Lup asks.  She pats the bed next to her.  “Plenty of room for two.”

              Barry seems to break from his reverie.  He laughs and clambers onto the bed, though Lup swears she sees a glimpse of a blush across his cheeks.

              They watch the TV in silence for a few moments.

              “Hey, um, Lup?”

              “Yeah?”

              “If we’re gonna be doing this – I mean, if this is our plan for this plane…”

              “Definitely.”

              “Can you teach me more about the foods you’ve cooked?  I know you and Taako have a long history of this and I know the crew and I have eaten our fair share of foods you’ve made and I guess I wanted to - ”

              “Barry.”  Lup cuts him off with a smile.  “Of course I’ll teach you.  I want my partner in TV to be the greatest chef that ever was.”

              Barry properly blushes now.  Lup leans against him slightly, and nestles her head on his shoulder.  It’s a gesture they’ve done plenty of times.  The crew would sit around on colder nights, and Lup would be tired and lean on Barry for support.

              Somehow, in this moment, it feels more than that.  Like they are sharing something more than just being on the same crew.

              “Where do you want me to start?  Taako’s favorite?  My favorite?”

              “Taako’s favorite.”

              “Ye of little faith.”  But she starts talking.  And the night drags on as Lup spends it telling Barry the secrets to a good meal.

****

              The show obviously had ratings before Lup and Barry appeared on it.  But now they skyrocket.

              Lup spends most of her time doing the dangerous work – using the oven and the stove, cooking the oil, keeping things from burning.  Barry learns quickly how to chop vegetables properly, how to stir with grace, how to tell when things are finished.

              And the two of them work magic.  Together they’re a force to be reckoned with.

              Each night Lup tells him a new recipe, something he can learn and internalize for the next show.  Sometime those recipes make it onto the actual broadcast.  Barry swears he saw Lup bribe the announcer one day just so she could teach him how to make filet mignon live on air.

              Time passes.  Barry gets better.  He starts chopping things in record time.  He starts taking risks, suggesting additions to the recipe that even Lup is proud of.  And he learns not to burn the food, and Lup finally lets him use the stove.

              After a few months, when the rest of their family hasn’t turned up, they both decide to broadcast their message to their viewers (of which, by now, they have many).  They announce a special dish to the first person to respond with the name of their ship.  They get many replies.  None of them correct.

              Lucretia finds them first.  She had been living in a small town’s library, without much access to outside sources, until she turned on the food channel one day in hopes of finding a new recipe (and possibly finding Taako).  She had laughed at the concept of Barry on a cooking show, before she watched and saw that he was actually quite impressive.

              They invite her to come stay with them, and as soon as she arrives Lup introduces their manager to their _new_ manager.

              With Lucretia available to search while Lup and Barry focus on their show, the rest of the crew aren’t too far behind.  They come in every few weeks, laughing and admiring the intimate portrait of passion and creation that Lup, the evoker, and Barry, the necromancer, created.  Together.

              They get a cookbook deal.  They get two.

              In the end, everyone is there to cheer them on.  Everybody except Taako.

              Davenport (who they found without his precious ship) does some digging.  With the help of Lucretia, they find that the Light has been claimed by someone that isn’t the Hunger.  They can only assume it’s Taako.  But none of them know where he is.

              Lup get worried.  So much so that it distracts from her cooking.  One day she’s staring out into space, worried about her brother, and Barry suddenly shoves her away from the stove, where oil had spilled and is now burning heavily and loudly.  The crew are there with fire safety, but Lup is shaken up.

              “Hey,” Barry says, hurrying her away from the fire.  “You’re okay.”

              “That was - ”

              Lup looks back at the fire, which has died down now.  She hugs herself tightly.

              “I’m not supposed to – I never - ”

              “Hey, it’s okay!” Barry puts an arm around her shoulder, and suddenly Lup’s back at the beginning, defending Barry in front of their stupid manager.  It shouldn’t matter, just this simple touch, but it does.  A lot.

              “I’m just worried.”

              “I know.  We all are.”

****

              In the end, Lucretia’s the one that finds him.

              Though this plane isn’t much for magic, Lucretia tries her scrying anyway.  She fails the first twenty times, and she blames the lack of magical energy.  Lup asks how she can help.  Everyone asks how they can help.  Lucretia simply focuses harder.

              She finds him on the thirty-third try, and Lucrtia’s breathing heavily from the stress.  The whole crew is there, huddled around her scrying glass.

              It’s Taako alright, but he looks different.  Lup has never seen him look so dingy before (he always stayed pampered, even on the road).  His hair’s a mess too.  He’s wearing what distinctly looks like a prison uniform, and now Lup is extremely worried.

              Lucretia pinpoint the location after a little more effort, and they drop everything and go, show on hiatus.

              They find themselves in front of a prison – a proper prison, with barbed wire fences and everything.  Lup takes the lead, fuming.

              The warden initially denies them entry.  Initially.  Then Lup displays the biggest magical fire show she can manage without proper magic, and Barry’s right behind her, and everyone’s right behind her, all ready to fight whoever they need to.

              The warden doesn’t put up a fight.  He let’s them straight into the main cafeteria, where a bunch of prisoners are spread out, eating crappy food.  There’s a TV on in the corner.  Lup and Barry’s show is playing.

              There’s some commotion at all six of them bursting into the room, but none as loud or as glorious as when Lup sees her brother.

              Taako leaps onto the top of the table and bounds over to Lup, who holds out her arms and hugs him right then and there.  Everyone else joins in.

              “What the _fuck_ are you doing here, Taako?” Lup demands.

              “The Light wanted me to reenact _Orange is the New Black_ and I was _not_ fucking having it.”

              Taako pulls away and turns to Barry.  Barry smiles for a second before Taako punches him, hard, in the shoulder.

              “Barold, what the _fuck_.”

              “T – Taako, what - ”

              “ _You stole my show.  I was supposed to be on that show!”_

              He gestures wildly to the TV.

              “They play it every day!  I watched every day while you stole my fucking thunder, _Bluejeans._ ”

              “I, um, I’m sorry?”

              “ _Sorry_ does not cover the 3d6 psychic damage I accrued every day I was here!”

              Lucretia steps forward, eyeing the warden, who was talking into his radio.

              “Guys, we should _go_.”

              “No, I have not even _begun_ to complain about this!” Taako protests, but Davenport starts to push at everyone’s knees.

              “We really need to go,” Lucretia repeats.  There’s the sound of guards coming down the hallway.

              “No, see, this is the best part about season 4, where there’s a prison break and - ”

              Taako’s interrupted by Magnus simply picking him up and legging it out of the room.  Everyone else follows.

              “Hey, um, Taako?” Davenport asks as they’re running.  “Where’s my ship?”

              “That thing?  Stupid thing is the reason I’m here.  Got arrested for reckless driving – it’s not _my_ fault I never know how to drive that thing!”

              They make it to the Starblaster, with Taako still going off.  And before the guards can catch up with them, they’re on their way.

              “Are we going back to the show?” Taako asks.  “I need to show these two bozos how it’s done!”

              “Nope.  We’re leaving.”

              Davenport doesn’t wait to hear Taako’s loud complaints as he shifts the Starblaster into flight.  And as they fly away to the next plane, Lup and Barry chance one last glance at each other.  They’re both smiling, happy with what they made, and they both know that, next time they get a chance, Lup is showing Taako how much Barry has learned.


	3. Chapter 3

Lup awakens standing up behind a counter, like she’s been daydreaming.  She blinks sleep out of her eyes and looks around.  Nobody’s nearby, not the crew nor anyone else, but the place she’s in is _very_ interesting.

              She’s in the front room of a shop.  The walls are painted a deep red, with memorabilia of random things Lup isn’t familiar with (she’s on a different plane, after all) but that all give off a very distinct vibe: _punk._   There’s a doorway with a set of swinging doors leading to the back, beyond which Lup can’t really see much, but she fathoms a wild guess as to where she is, based on the big sign on the wall behind her that reads: _Black Lotus Tattoos_.

              “Oh fuck. yes.” Lup grins.

              She’s not intimidated.  In fact, she’s going to enjoy this.  Taako had been the first to goad her into giving herself (and him) a poke and stick tattoo when they were kids.  After that, she learned.  She runs her hand along the small of her back and smiles at the tramp stamp there, the design hidden from _everyone_ she knows, including Taako.  She remembers Taako presenting the design she had inked into both of their wrists, the simple braid that can only be connected when she presses hers against his.

              She knows her tats.

              She spends the next few minutes getting acquainted with her apparent new home.  There are comfy-looking chairs in the back, surrounded by weird modern art.  She’s making her way back to the front when the first customer enters.

              She’s a timid-looking woman in her 50s.  She looks sad.

              “Um, I’m sorry that I don’t have an appointment…”

              “I’m pretty empty,” Lup says, pointedly ignoring the planner behind the counter.  “What’d you need?”

              “My, um, my husband and I got matching tattoos.  And he - ”

              The woman starts tearing up.

              “He, um - ”

              Lup swoops forward.

              “Did that asshole cheat on you?”

              The woman nods.

              “Cover-up?”

              She nods again.  Lup narrows her eyes.

              “Well, come on then.  And tell me about him.”

              She shuttles the woman towards the back.

              “I do my _best_ work when I’m angry.”

****

              She ends up covering the dirty liar’s tattooed half a heart with a beautiful bird, its wings spread in release.  The woman sobs when she sees it.  Lup smiles.

              Outside, two more people are waiting.  One wants a modern abstract design on his back.  The other, a flower.

              She finishes the guy first.  He’s satisfied, thanking her on his way out.  By now it’s late into the day, almost seven, and the lady’s still waiting there for her flower.

              “What _kind_ of flower?”

              The woman simply points across the street.  Lup hadn’t even considered the outside of her shop, she had been so focused on what was inside.

              There’s a simple street outside – best Lup can tell, she’s in some sort of small town.  By now it’s dark outside, and the only thing she sees is another shop, illuminated barely by the light inside.  There’s a big glass window, stretching floor to ceiling, with a faint blue light flickering behind what were distinctly _flowers_.  Loads of them, in bushels of varying sizes.  She can’t really see their colors from here, but she can tell they’re beautiful, and well taken care of.

              The woman in front of Lup holds up a flower, clearly from the florist.  It’s a beautiful orchid, with lush color.  Obviously grown with care.

              _Okay, I need to meet this florist_.

              She spends the rest of the night delicately painting the orchid into the woman’s back.  Afterwards, the woman thanks her, and Lup figures it’s about time to close up shop.  She realizes, thankfully, that there’s a small apartment above the shop, and Lup loves it.  She goes to bed looking out the window, as the florist’s light finally turns off.

****

              The next morning, Lup wakes up earlier than the next planned appointment so she can walk across the street.  She dodges a bicycle rider on the cobblestoned pavement.

              In the daylight, the shop looks even prettier.  It’s painted a lovely pastel blue, with a pale yellow door with some bells attached to the handle.  She looks down at her outfit – she left the red robe in her room, but she’s still wearing the crop top and black short shorts that she’s always wearing every cycle.  This place is too…pastel, for her.  She automatically feels out of place.

              The bell rings in a sickeningly sweet and charming way.  The shop is busy with customers, and there’s more flowers inside.  They’re lined up on little benches and shelves, all sorts of colors, sizes, shapes.  She brushes past the many people to try and catch a glimpse of the front.  The shopkeeper is up front, his hands holding an enormous bouquet of lilacs that obscures his face.  The customer he’s helping is laughing, and as she lowers the bouquet Lup catches a sight of his face.

              “Barry _fucking_ Bluejeans!” she yells.

              Half of the shop turn and gasp at her profanity.  She doesn’t care.  She watches as Barry turns at the sound of her voice and gapes at her.

              “Lup, what - ”

              “Why, may I ask - ” Lup storms towards him.  “Is a _necromancer_ working in a _flower shop_?”

              The woman with the lilacs looks confused.

              “Um…n – necromancer?” she asks.  Lup simply pushes her to the side, coming to stand immediately in front of Barry.

              “Well?” Lup demands.

              Barry offers a hesitant smile.

              “I, um, find them pretty?” he attempts.

              “Uh-uh.  That’s Merle’s territory.  Try again.”

              Barry laughs this time, and reaches below the counter.  He emerges holding another purple lilac.  It’s pretty and delicate, which seem at odds with Barry’s large hands and awkward fingers.

              “Honest, Lup.  The Light made me work here and I actually really like it.”

              Lup takes the flower.

              “It’s nice to make _living_ things grow for a change.”

              Lup smiles back at him, then gasps.

              “Barry, you’ll never _guess_ where the Light put me.”

              “Is it the tattoo parlor across the street?”

              “How did you - ”

              “Lup,” Barry says, looking her up and down.  “It’s kind of obvious.”

              Lup cracks another smile.

              “You should probably go.  You’re kind of holding up the customers.”

              Lup glances behind her, where the lady with the lilacs is waiting to pay.  She blushes and steps to the side.

              “I’ll catch you later, Bluejeans.”

              Lup winks at Barry, before turning tail back to her own shop.

****

              It turns out her shop is actually quite popular, and apparently she doesn’t have any coworkers, so she works on into the night.  By the time she’s finished, the flower shop’s lights are off for the evening.

              The next time she visits him, it’s the next morning, and she can barely squeeze in a hello before people are knocking at her own shop door again.  He laughs and hands her another lilac.  She tucks it behind her ear before going to work.

              She loves inking.  She can get creative when she needs to, chat with the clients and get their wildest stories, and have a whale of a time fulfilling the client’s wishes.  She would totally, if given the chance, continue doing this after the year was over.

              But for some reason, she can’t get her mind off of Barry fucking Bluejeans in that stupid flower shop.

              She makes sure not to let it guide her hand - far from her to actually let a stupid dorky human let _her_ get distracted – but it’s on her mind the whole day.  She keeps fingering the lilac in her hair and glancing out the window when she comes out front.

              What does he see in it?  Is it the popularity?  Is it the fact that he’s helping people?

              And the worst part of it all was that today, once again, she works well into the night, and Barry fucking Bluejeans has already gone to bed.

              She clambers up the steps to her own bed that night, but before she plops herself onto the pillows and gingerly takes the lilac out of her hair.  There’s no vase nearby that she can see, but there is a small bookcase.  Taking the heaviest book she can find, she carefully presses the lilac in between the pages.

              “If you’re going to give them to me, I might as well keep them,” Lup whispers.

The next morning Lup makes sure to get up well before the rest of the street does, and she has two coffees and bagels in her hands just as Barry opens up shop.

“Thanks, Lup!” he exclaims, seeing the precious coffee.

They take a seat on a small bench right outside.  Now that she has a chance to look, Lup fully appreciates the stark difference between Barry’s shop and hers.  The red interior of her shop continues on the outside, with a gaudy looking sign (complete with some skulls) hanging above.  Compared to Barry’s picturesque storefront, it’s comical.

“I have something for you,” Barry says, as he reaches behind him to produce a light pink peony.  Lup takes it and sniffs it gently.

“I still don’t get you, Barry,” she says.  “First you learn to cook like a pro, now you’ve taken up gardening.  You do know that Jack of All Trades is a _bard_ thing, right?”

“It’s a feat too.”

He’s staring up at the sky, sipping his coffee.  He closes his eyes for a few seconds.

“You know, Lup, I think I’m starting to really like this trend that the Light’s doing.”

“What, separating all of us?  I’m not really sure - ”

“Not that.  That still sucks.  But this whole idea that we’re starting in these new worlds, in this new dimension, and some mythical force came down and dictated that we were…florists.  And cooks.  And artists, and college students, I mean - ”

He laughs softly.

“We could be anyone in the world, in _any_ world.  Isn’t that - ”

He catches himself, and lowers his gaze back to Lup.

              “Isn’t that the coolest thing ever?”

              He’s wearing a big goofy grin, and Lup’s heart skips a beat while looking at him.  He’s really excited, more excited than she’s seen him in a while, and despite her own worries, despite her constant thoughts of _Where’s my family, where’s my brother?_ – she finds herself grinning as well.

              “Fuck yeah, I’ll drink to that.”

              She taps her coffee with his, and they sip simultaneously.  The clocktower down the street chimes the hour, and they both stand up.

              “I need to - ”

              “Yeah, I think I should - ”

              Lup smiles as Barry nervously gathers himself.

              “I’ll see you tomorrow morning?”

              “If you bring the coffee.”

              “What am I, your mule?” Lup jokes, but she knows she’s bringing the coffee either way.

****

              They settle into a routine.  Lup and Barry work throughout the day.  Barry turns in well before Lup, and Lup works tirelessly to please her clients.  But each morning, Lup’s there with coffee, and Barry’s there with another flower.  And every night Lup presses the flowers into her book.

              Each weekend they decide to explore the village beyond their little street, and they stumble upon many a good bookstore, restaurant, and vintage clothing shop.  They have fun, and chat, and while they’re at it they investigate the world around them (because that’s their actual _job_ ).

              The village is small, and with no clear vehicles leaving beyond its boundaries, the best they can do to find their family is to post a flyer in the village square, and send this world’s equivalent of a telegram out to the surrounding areas.  Lup and Barry would go themselves, but they both find themselves drawn back to the tasks the Light has given them, and the quaint little lives that they’re living as a result.

              Before Lup knows it eight months have gone by, the passage of time marked only by the steadily growing numbers of flowers Lup has accumulated in her books.  Peonies, lilacs, tulips.  She starts having to look up the names of some of the more unpronounceable ones, and Barry helps her too, and she finds she has her fair share of ranunculus, gerbera daisies, and alstroemeria.  The last ones are her favorite, as their dark streaks inside their light pink petals remind her of herself.

              Her work, though very interesting, does sometimes become dull, and its one of those days when a tall man with a healing black eye steps in and asks for a tattoo of his dog.

              “Yeah, it’ll be a bit complicated, is that - ”

              She looks up to find Magnus grinning back at her.

              Magnus, as it turns out, surfaced as a dog trainer – his dream job, that also allowed him to travel.  Turns out the world beyond their village is a lot larger than they realized, and Magnus only just now got to their own.

              He loves Barry’s work, and Barry gives him a massive sunflower as a welcoming present.  Magnus laughs and affixes it to his own dog, a beautiful golden named Lucy.

              “Did you name her after Lucretia?” Lup asks.

              Magnus shakes his head, then proceeds to start playing fetch with Lucy.  Lup leans over to Barry.

              “He totally named that dog after Lucretia.”

              Though Magnus brings a nice breath of fresh air into their lives, he also comes with bad news.  The Light is still out there, as far as he knows.  And a couple nights ago he swears he could see dark inky black in the otherwise beautiful sunset.

              “I know you guys are happy here,” he urges.  “And I don’t want to ruin anything.  But we need to do our jobs.”

              Both Barry and Lup nod.

              They wait until the weekend, then they pack up.  Barry brings a few flowers for the road, to give to the rest of the crew once they find them.  Lup brings her books of flowers, and an extra tattoo pen.

              “Just in case,” she muses as she joins the other two.

              They both take a look back at their homes.  The ones that they lived in for less than a year, but for some reason, they both felt more at home than they ever had before.

              Lup and Barry glance over at each other.  They both smile, hesitantly, and Lup knows that look.  It’s the look Barry always gives when he’s not confident.  And she hates it, that this world is forcing their hands and taking Barry away from somewhere that he was happy.  She clutches the bag holding her books and scowls at the clear blue sky, knowing what’s hiding just beyond the horizon.

****

              This time, it takes a while to find them.  It takes too long.

              They travel quickly, as quickly as they and Lucy can manage.  Each day they talk and chat like they’ve never been apart.  But each night they look up and flinch every time a shadow moves the wrong way.

              While they travel, Barry and Lup tell them about their lives, and Magnus his.  It starts to feel to the three of them that they were each placed somewhere that was almost perfect for them, and it acts as a tool for them to find the others.

              One night, after Barry has gone to bed, Lup is flipping through her flower books when Magnus finds her.  He looks over her shoulder and follows her fingers as they flip through the days upon days of flowers that Barry had given her over the months.

              “Woah,” Magnus says.

              “What?”

              “I just…didn’t know how much he cared about you.”

              Lup looks up at him.

              “It was just his way of saying hello.  I brought him a coffee in return.”

              “No, Lup.”

              Magnus takes a seat next to her.  He points to a random flower – a peony.

              “ _That_ means shyness.  And _that -_ ”

              He points to a ranunculus.

              “Those pretty ones symbolize charm and attraction.”

              Lup is staring at him.

              “And these!”

              He’s pointing to the alstroemerias.

              “Devotion.”

              Lup almost drops the book as she stands up.  Magnus backs up.

              “Lup, you, uh, okay?”

              Lup’s staring at Barry’s sleeping form.  She’s clutching the book in her hands.  Some of the flowers have started to fall out of it.

              “Magnus.”  Lup turns to him slowly.  “You’re saying that all of _these_ \- ”

              She waggles the book for emphasis.

              “ – all of these are just signs of – of _what_?”

              Magnus looks far too concerned than he should have any business being.

              “Uhm…love, Lup.”

              Lup is silent for too long, because Magnus is now reaching out a hand to touch her shoulder.

              “Lup?”

              Lup smacks it away.

              “Kay.  Thanks.  That’s nice.  I’m gonna go to fucking bed now.”

              Without missing a beat, she storms past Magnus.  Storms past _Barry fucking Bluejeans_.  Storms as far away as she can before lying down and attempting to sleep.

****

              She doesn’t sleep.  Not a wink.

              _How could she?_

              She’s dead silent the next morning when Barry rouses.  She’s dead silent as they walk, dead silent as Lucy runs around and chases a squirrel she saw.

              She’s too silent, for Barry says something.

              “Hey, uh, Lup, are you okay?”

              “I’m fine,” she says _wayyy_ too quickly.

              The day drags on for seventy-two hours longer than a day should drag on for.  Finally, they make camp, and Lup steps away to make sense of her brain.

              She’s flipping through the pages of her books again when Barry comes up behind her.

              She swears Magnus sent him.

              “Hey, Lup,” he opens.

              “Hey.”

              “So, um…I think Magnus told you something last night that’s got you pretty spooked, and I was wondering if you could tell me - ”

              _Oh, fuck it._

              “Did you do this?”

              Lup whirls around, book held high.  More flowers are falling out, but she doesn’t care.

              “Lup?”

              “Magnus says they all mean something.  Some stuff about devotion and faithfulness and love and I just - ”

              She puts the book down.

              “Just level with me, Barry, did you do this?”

              Barry’s staring at her, shocked.

              “L – Lup, I swear, I didn’t - ”

              Lup stands up, coming face to face with him.  She’s taller.  She’s always been taller, and usually she doesn’t mind, but she hates it now, because she wants to be on his level, she doesn’t want him to feel scared, she wants him to feel happy and excited, because this, _this_ –

              “Lup, I honestly didn’t know that’s what those meant.” Barry confesses.  “I just thought they were pretty, the lilacs always smell nice, and the alstroemerias, they reminded me of you, and I - ”

              Lup has no idea what she’s doing, what she’s thinking, or why she’s thinking it.  She just does it.

              Before Barry can breathe another word, she moves forward and cuts him off with a kiss.

              She hears Barry give a small tiny yelp of surprise before suddenly the world melts away, and it’s just the two of them.  Standing there.  Sharing something that Lup knew she’s been dreaming of for eight months now, longer, back to the cooking show, back to college and breaking his nose, back before that, when she was on stage dropping the mic and Barry was behind her, blushing, because of course he was, he has always been, and _this_.

              She feels fingers brush her arms, and she lets them.  Her eyes are shut tight and she’s stopped breathing, but she doesn’t care.

              She doesn’t know who breaks away first.  It doesn’t really matter.

              They both look at each other.  And for a blessed single moment, nothing in the world exists but them.

              Then reality comes crashing back in like a tidal wave.  The fact that Lucy has now begun to sniff at their feet.  The fact that Magnus is there, and he just saw _all_ of that.  The fact that they’re in the middle of a mission to save the world from imminent destruction.  The fact that she was Lup.  And this, the man she just kissed, was _Barry.  Fucking. Bluejeans._

              Lup and Barry about face at the exact same time.  They both settle on opposite corners of the camp.

              “Goodnight, Magnus,” they say in unison.

              Magnus doesn’t say a goddamn thing.

              Good.

****

              They spend the rest of the trip.  The rest of their time on this plane.  The rest of this entire _cycle_.

              In complete silence.

              They find everyone else.  The tip about the happy places works.  They’re all in their happy places.  They reunite, and sure, Lup talks to everyone else.

              Cuz she sure as _fuck_ ain’t talking to Bluejeans.

              They find the Light.  Lup doesn’t really register this.  She doesn’t register much of anything, actually, and when Taako sees her, all he can do is smirk.

              He knows.

              She _prays_ that the cycle end sooner so she can end her suffering.


	4. Chapter 4

When Lup opens her eyes in the next plane, Taako is sitting across from her, wearing a shit-eating grin.

              “Hey, Lup,” he says, trying to hold back a snicker.

Lup thinks he’s manifested himself into this plane just so he can make fun of her for Barry, and she’s about to punch him in the teeth, before he points to something behind her and she turns.  She’s in a dingy looking RV from what she can tell, the driver’s seat empty.  Taako’s squeezed into the small seat near the window, and now he’s really having trouble not laughing.

              “Looks like you’re a real rockstar, sis,” he says, giggling now.

              She focuses on the poster hanging lopsided from the wall.  It’s a picture of her, but her outfit is twelve times more goth punk than she usually wears.  She’s holding a violin, or she _thinks_ it’s a violin, as in reality it’s a piece of metal with strings on it.  She’s bent over and, as Taako put it, _rocking out_.  Above the picture are words in poorly edited text in an abysmal unreadable font.  She can make out her own name, and Taako’s in fine print at the bottom, but that’s it.

              She turns back to Taako and raises an eyebrow.  Taako recovers, still chuckling.

              “Looks like I’m your manager, baby!” he calls out, then goes back to laughing.

              Lup rolls her eyes.

****

              She is, in fact, a rock star, though judging by the state of the RV, the fact they are _in_ an RV, shows Lup that she may not be the best.

              Taako continues making fun of her as she explores the RV.  She stumbles across a schedule planner, and finds that her first show is later that night, at a random warehouse she’s never heard of before.  She also finds the violin in the picture – a sweet ass looking instrument made of a simple red piece of metal bent into the odd outline of a violin.  She plucks at the strings and smiles.

              “Oh, I’m _so_ committing myself to this.”

              She finds the warehouse via the GPS in the front seat of the RV, and Taako manages to find the keys.

              “Just like the old days, eh, sis?” Taako jokes as he starts the car.

              “Yeah,” Lup muses as she settles into the passenger seat.  “Just like em.”

              The warehouse is a musty old building, but there’s a decent number of people already crowded around it.  The posters advertise what Lup had been secretly wishing for.

              “A battle of the motherfucking bands!” she whoops, as Taako unloads the equipment from the back (Lup distinctly does not help him).

              “Who’s your rival?” Taako calls over.

              “Dunno.  Apparently they’re anonymous.”

              “Sweet!  Mystery opponent!”

              Someone inside directs them to their stage, and Taako fiddles with the amp.

              “Y’know, just because we’ve been to worlds with working electricity - ”

              “Don’t forget Fantasy RadioShack back home.”

              “Yeah.  Doesn’t mean I know how to set this up.”

              “Oh, move over.”  Lup shoves him out of the way, rolling her eyes _again_.  “ _Someone_ wasn’t paying attention in computational planar science.”

              “I plead not guilty!  The classroom was right next door to the kitchens, I was distracted by the smell of filet mignon – with rosemary!”

              Lup smiles and plugs the final cord into the amp.  The violin lets out a wonderful hum.  Lup picks it up and tests it out.  A long chord echoes through the warehouse.

              “Let’s rock and roll.”

****

              The concert is fantastic.  Lup steals the stage while Taako watches from the sidelines, cheering her on.  Not knowing her apparent usual set piece, she improvises, and the crowd goes _wild_.  She feels better than she has in _years_.

              As she lets loose the last note, another note, high pitched and electronic, pierces the atmosphere.  The crowd turns to the stage opposite Lup, where a curtain hangs, backlit by a spotlight of blue.  There’s a silhouette of someone, hunched over a piano, and the one note turns into a chord, still electronic, with a slight autotonic cadence.  There’s a pause.

              The chords turn into a song, a _good_ song, that has the crowd cheering for this mystery rival, and Lup feels jealousy boiling inside her.  The song builds and builds, then the figure hits a switch below the piano, and the bass drops like the floor disappeared from underneath Lup’s feet.

              “Badass!” Taako remarks, coming out from the sidelines to stand next to Lup.  Lup is seething.

              The song goes on for too long, Lup thinks, and the final chord leaves her with chills she does _not_ want.  The crowd cheers louder than they _ever_ did for Lup, and Lup storms off stage, mortified.

              “Hey, sis!” Taako calls after her.  “It wasn’t that bad, you still sounded - ”

              “ _I need to know who that is,”_ Lup hisses through gritted teeth.  She’s clutching her violin too tightly.

              “Easy there, tiger,” Taako says, holding up a hand hesitantly.  “There’s another battle tomorrow night.  Well figure it out, I’ve got proficiency in Stealth!”

              Lup knows very well he does _not_ , but she appreciates him trying to help.

              “Let’s go.  I need to practice.  I’m gonna beat that fucker if it’s the last thing I do on this plane.”

****

              She practices all through the night, and Taako eventually gives up trying to tame her and goes to bed.  She still practices, setting up a set piece made of her own original songs, all of which she knows sound amazing.  She isn’t about to let some random person from this plane win against her.  If she is gonna live on this plane for a year, she wants to make her mark.

              The morning comes, and still she keeps practicing.  Elves don’t need to sleep anyway.

              Taako emerges from his beauty sleep and yawns.

              “Sis, that’s enough, you’re gonna beat them.”

              “Nope!  I aim to win this, Taako, and there’s nothing you can do to stop me.”

              Taako sighs, covers his long ears, and goes back to bed.

              The night comes, and they both head to the new location.  The big curtain is still up in front of the other stage, and there’s another poster.

              “Amp vs. amp?” Taako queries.

              Lup grins wickedly.

              “Fuck yes.”

****

              The set up takes five minutes at most and Lup’s ready to roll by minute six.  She readies her violin and stares daggers at the curtain.  Taako waits with bated breath behind the scenes.

              The concert starts loud and proud, with Lup strumming a violent arpeggio at the same time as the figure slams out their own in the opposite direction.  And then they just _move_ , together and apart at the same time, completely in time with each other, creating a spark of _magic._   And the crowd stands there, stunned, and even Taako is dazed, because what they’re creating is new and sudden and beautiful.

              It ends as suddenly as it began, and Lup is breathing heavily, her arm still raised with her bow in hand.  She waits as the MC ponders over the performance, shaken out of his stupor.

              “It seems we have a tie!” he announces, and Lup narrows her eyes.  “ _However!_   It shall be broken by a private concert!  May the best one win.”

              Lup smiles as she hops down from the stage.  Taako is still staring, his mouth slightly open.  She nudges it shut, shaking him.

              “I have _never_ heard you play like that,” he says, recovering.

              “Yeah,” Lup says.  She’s ignoring the rush of adrenaline running through her.  “Let’s just find out who this person is.”

              “Whoever they are, they’re incre - ”

              Taako shuts up as Lup gives him a glare, but Lup can’t help but agree.  As she walks towards the MC’s backstage room, she’s replaying the beautiful chaos that she and this mysterious person created.

              She throws open the door with gusto.

              “Alright.  Who the fuck is - ”

              She stops short.  Sitting in front of her is the MC, chatting wildly with the man next to him.  His back is to Lup, his hair is in a mullet that looks _awful_.  But he’s wearing his favorite jeans.

              “Barry.”  Lup can barely breathe.  “Holy shit.”

              Barry turns, a laugh still on his face, and sees her.  The laugh disappears, to be replaced with the distinct blush Lup is too familiar with.  It makes him look twelve times dorkier than he is, and Lup loves it.

              “L – Lup!  H – how did you…?”

              “ _Barold?_ ” Taako’s here now, gaping at Barry as he stands up.  The MC watches, wild-eyed.

              “You two know each other?” he asks, laughing.

              Lup doesn’t know how to respond.  Taako responds for her by swooping forward and grasping Barry’s hand, smiling.

              “I cannot _believe_ this!” he says.  Barry’s eyes are still focused on Lup.  He’s still blushing.

              “You two certainly make an excellent duo!” the MC remarks.  “It’s a shame you two have been battling this whole time.”

              Barry blushes even harder, and this time Lup lets out a giggle.

              “Never would have taken you for dubstep, Barry,” she says.  She smiles wryly.

              “You, um…” Barry struggles for what to say.  “You really know how to play.”

              Lup grins.

              “Hell yes, I do.”

****

              They all retreat to the RV, where Taako begins to cook a humble dinner for the three of them.  He serves them their plates, winks at Lup, then turns and walks into the back room, leaving the two of them to themselves.

              “So…” Lup begins.  “When you woke up and realized you were a dubstep piano player…”

              “I, um…” Barry laughs quietly.  “The dubstep part wasn’t actually - ”

              “You _added_ the dubstep?!” Lup cries, and Barry laughs.

              “Yeah.  I heard you were my rival and I needed – um…”

              He falls into silence, staring at his plate.  He hasn’t touched his food.

              “Yes, Barry?” Lup pushes.

              “I needed a way to impress you.”

              It’s barely a whisper, but Lup hears it, and her heart swells.

              “You do realize that _anything_ you do would impress me, right Barry?”

              The blush is back again, and Lup giggles as she nudges Barry’s shoulder playfully.

              “We should, um…” Barry lets the sentence hang, and Lup realizes she’s holding her breath.  Maybe the kiss _wasn’t_ a fluke.  Maybe there _was_ something there.  Maybe…

“…eat.  Don’t want Taako thinking we don’t like his food.”

There’s a disappointment that settles in Lup’s chest as she nods and starts cutting the food.  Like she had wanted that sentence to end differently.  Like there was something there, right in front of her, that she couldn’t quite see.

They eat quietly, after that, and when Taako walks in later to collect the plates, Lup immediately volunteers to wash up, to get herself away from Barry.  Taako’s grin is replaced with confusion.  Barry simply gets up and walks to the front of the RV.

“I can sleep up front.  I don’t mind.”

Something in Lup tries very hard to say _You can share my bed, I don’t mind_ but she kills that thought and buries it thirty feet underground before it can hit her tongue.

As Taako and Lup retreat to the bunk beds in the back, Taako shoots Lup a quizzical look.  She knows that look.  It’s the _What the hell is wrong with you?_ look.  The _Are you stupid?_ look.

“Just leave it, Taako,” she says, her voice bitter.

****

              Taako leaves it.  And for the next few months, Barry and Lup play together, on the road.  Every night they create fire.  And every night they go home cold.

              She spends the time she’s not on stage practicing, to keep her mind focused on everything _but_ Barry fucking Bluejeans.  And when Taako finally steps in and pleads with her to take a break, she makes some hot cocoa and retreats to her room in the back of the RV.

              Taako doesn’t take long to find her one of these moments.  Barry’s out doing who knows what when Taako slips into the room and sits down next to Lup.

              “Sis,” he begins, nudging her shoulder gently.  “What’s wrong?”

              Lup knows he knows exactly what’s wrong, but he’s her brother, so she tells him.

              “I thought it meant something, y’know?  Like he had finally had the courage to say something, and I had finally _done_ something, but it’s like it never happened!  Did I scare him off?  Does he not like me?  _What do I do?_ ”

              Taako chuckles softly and puts a hand on her shoulder.

              “Lup, if it’s gonna happen, it will.  I know it.”

              “Yeah, but - ”

              “But nothing.  Just give it time.”

              He hugs her, and she hugs him back, and she sighs into his shoulder.

              She gives it time.  Eventually, Magnus finds them, having spawned into this world as a die hard fan, just waiting for a chance to see Lup live.  He’d been just as excited then as he is now, and now their RV is _really_ full.  Taako is cooking for four now, and Lup and Barry are growing better than ever.

              They’re not a hard bunch to miss, and after a particularly excellent performance, they find their three remaining friends, cheering in the back of the theater.

              Lup and Barry leave everyone to catch up, as they step to the side to catch their breath.  By now, Lup is used to this – the cooldown after an epic show.  The awkward way she and Barry talk about it, like it’s just another day, like they don’t create fire and ghosts in every song.  The thoughts, swirling in her mind, that every night she pushes down, because this is _Barry_.  This is the denim-wearing, multi-classing nerd she likes so much.  This isn’t someone she falls in love with.

              It couldn’t be.

              In the end, Davenport discovers the Light is hidden in their music all along.

              It’s supposed to be a huge revelation.  The DM must have thought about it for weeks.

              All Lup feels is tired.


	5. Chapter 5

The next plane they arrive in, they arrive together.

              It’s night, and it’s cold, with snow on the ground and a crispness in the air.  The area where they show up is an extensive pine forest, but after a bit of wandering they stumble on a small city, nestled at the base of a tall hill.  From far away they can see more buildings towards the top, with bright decorative lights adorning both the houses and the trees.

              “Is it Candlenights?” Lucretia asks, hope blossoming in her voice.

              “One way to find out!” Magnus calls, rushing down the hill.  Davenport protests but Taako and Lup just laugh.

              When they get closer to the city, they see that though the upper hill is decorated extensively, the lower valley is sparsely so, almost empty.  The city is active, with regular non-festive lamplight illuminating people going to and fro.  Though the streets are clean, the whole area seems rundown, with the roads cracked and the infrastructure of the buildings fading.

              Magnus finds a bar almost instantly, and the rest of the crew reluctantly follow.

              “Hail and well met!” he announces to the barkeep, who looks at him oddly.  The other patrons, though surprised, still offer a smile, and Lup concludes this place must be at least a _little_ bit friendly.

              “Hello,” the barkeep replies.  “Are you, um…new around here?”

              “Just moved here, my man.  Tell me, is there a reason the people on the hill are celebrating Candlenights and you aren’t?”

              The barkeep blinks.

              “C – Candlenights?”

              “Yeah.  That’s what those decorations are for, right?”

              “Um…those decorations are for _Christmas_ , but I - ”

              “You seriously don’t know who Ebenezer is?” a woman nearby asks, confusion in her voice.

              “That is why I am asking!” Magnus says, his enthusiasm never dropping.

              “If you’re new here, we might as well explain, Millie,” the barkeep says, leaning forward.  Millie nods.

              “Ebenezer’s the mayor of Hollyville.  He lives up the hill with all the other rich bastards, squirreling away money, not letting us have a penny.  But the worst thing he does is keep Christmas from us.  Makes it illegal for us downhill to celebrate.”

              Lup’s temper flares.

              “Some asshole is making you live in squalor _and_ keeping Candlenights from you?”

              “Christmas, but yes.”

              Merle steps forward.

“Listen, I know that the Candlenights thing sucks, but at least it’s only once a year, right?  You can celebrate other holidays, can’t you?”

Lup covers her mouth to hide her smile at Merle’s tactless approach.

The barkeep’s face falls.

“You must be _very_ new here,” he says.

“Christmas isn’t…once a year,” Millie says slowly.  “It’s…year round?  All the time?  I thought people knew this about Hollyville?”

“We’re dumb!” Magnus declares.  Lup sees Lucretia facepalm.

              “Is there anything we can do to help?” Lup asks, trying to save the conversation.

              The whole bar erupts in sad laughter.  The barkeep sighs.

              “Ebenezer keeps all his wealth, all his assets, locked away in his mansion.  Now unless you can somehow break into his estate, steal his entire net worth, abolish his laws, and kick him out of office for the hell of it…well, I’m afraid you’ll just have to live with the rest of us.  Without Christmas.”

              Without even noticing she’s doing it, Lup turns to Barry.  They lock eyes and exchange a devious smile.

              Davenport sees them, of course he does, and immediately steps between them.

              “Ohhhh, no,” he hisses at both of them under his breath.  “No, we are not to interfere with other planes.  We are here to observe, research, and _find_ the Light!”

              “Barkeeper man!” Lup grabs his attention, ignoring the fuming Davenport.  “This Ebenezer…where does he get all this power?  Doesn’t sound like he got elected…”

              “Hollyville isn’t one for magic.  Hasn’t been for a long time.  But Ebenezer has some of it – it keeps him alive, keeps him powerful.  He uses it to abuse his power and keep us in line.”

              Lup turns back to Davenport with the biggest shit-eating grin.

              “Sounds like a certain _Light_ that we know and love, eh, Dav?”

              Davenport narrows his eyes.

****

              The crew settles into Hollyville first, introducing themselves to the bar patrons and their neighbors.  Everyone is very pleasant and nice, and despite the town’s rundown appearance the citizens here seem to make the most of their situation.

              The barkeep, whose name is Daniel, offers the seven of them some rooms in the inn down the road.  They gladly take them, and Davenport calls a meeting.  They all squeeze into his room, which is nothing new, but the fact that it ends up with Lup and Barry pressed closely together makes Lup feel incredibly awkward.

              “Okay,” Davenport begins.  “I know what everyone’s thinking but we _can’t just - ”_

“I wanna steal Candlenights!”

              Every single one of the Starblaster crew responds in unison.  Davenport sighs.

              “Okay.  Fine.  I guess we can steal Candlenights.”

              He looks around at each person in turn.

              “Lucretia, you’re on research duty.  We need to know everything there is to know about this Ebenezer, where he lives, and if he really does have the Light.”

              Lucretia nods.

              “Magnus, demolitions.  If we’re going to break into this guy’s place, we need someone who isn’t afraid to make a little noise.”

              Magnus smiles wickedly.

              “Taako, how flexible are you?”

              Taako opens his mouth to respond.

              “Actually, please don’t answer that.  Just be ready to do some stunts.”

              Taako sinks back, disappointed, and Lup smirks at him.

              “Merle, can you be our lookout for anyone who gets in our way?”

              “Already on it, Capn’.”

              Davenport focuses on Lup and Barry, crammed together near the entrance to the room.

              “Lup and Barry…”

              _Did he just say “and”?  Please don’t tell me he just said “and”._

“I want you two to pose as potential investors.”

              “Oh, Dav, if that’s all you need then - ”

              “Wait a sec.  You’ll need to be convincing.  What if you posed as some rich newly married couple wanting to invest in a new property in Hollyville?”

              Lup doesn’t know what Barry’s response is to this information, as she herself is too busy sinking into the floor, trying to die.

              She distinctly hears Taako snickering from somewhere to her right, while Barry stammers a response.

              “M – married?  Dav, a – are you sure that - ”

              “It’ll be _perfect_!” Taako chimes in.  Lup stares _daggers_ at him but he completely ignores her.  “Such a good idea, Capnport, we’ll get started on it _right away_.”

              “Good!” Davenport says cheerfully.  “Good luck, everyone.  This thing will take time, so just focus on your roles and we’ll be fine!”

              Everyone else breaks.  Lup and Barry are still gaping.

              Taako comes along, steps between them, and grasps both of them by the shoulder.

              “Best of luck, my dudes.”

              He struts off between them to the door, before turning back.

              “You won’t neeeeeddd it,” he sings, before gleefully closing the door, and leaving Lup and Barry in silence.

****

              Lup isn’t fully sure how she manages to exit the room and retreat to the safety of her own, but when she snaps out of her reverie the first thing she does is run over to the bed and scream into a pillow.

              _Married._

              This was a nightmare.  It had to be.  She had wanted to do a heist with Barry, not _pretend to be his ultimate love_.

              She tosses the pillow to the side with gusto.

              “ _Married?!_ ” she shrieks to the ceiling.

              She’s thinking back to the kiss, to the music, to before, when she was just Lup, living her life, and Barry was just Barry, living his, and there wasn’t all this unnecessary complicated _stuff_ all stuffed in between.

              The pillow had hit the curtains on her window, parting them slightly.  She moves them to the side and realizes she actually has an excellent view of the hill, and the Candlenights cheer up at the top.  She looks down at the rest of Hollyville, barren and cheerless, and heaves a deep breath.

              For once, she doesn’t care about herself, or Barry, or anything else.  Now, it isn’t about them.  It’s about the city, the citizens, this plane, and her goddamn job.

              A few minutes later, she knocks on Barry’s door.  He opens it and smiles weakly.

              “Hey, Lup.”

              “Hey, Barold.”

              There’s a pause.

              “Barry, I’ve been thinking.”

              Barry looks up at her.

              “Yeah?”

              “We’re about to become this city’s greatest heroes.  And we need to _crush_ it.  So I say we give Davenport’s wild idea a shot.”

              There’s a flicker of surprise in Barry’s eyes, followed by a shaky smile.

              “Yeah, that sounds good.”

              Lup smiles back.

              “You have any plans?” she asks.

              Barry rubs at his neck.

              “Uhhh, no?” He laughs.  “I thought you would.”

              Lup giggles.  “Nope.  I thought _you_ would.”

              They look at each other before bursting out into laughter, and for a moment the awkwardness, the emotions, the kiss, everything – it goes away, and they’re both left with who they know they are – friends and crewmates, who have a job to do, and damn if they’re not gonna do it _well_.

****

              Lucretia’s up first, and when they meet with her, she’s smiling.

              “It’s like a kindergartener designed these plans.  They were just as easy to obtain and – I mean, look at these!”

              Lup gazes down at the blueprints stretched in front of her and the rest of the crew.  She has to admit the plans are rather childish.  One simple vault, in the middle of an open floorplan.  Just a handful of guards, little other security.  And the best part of all – a skylight looking directly into the vault, guarded by nothing but cameras.

              “This guy’s gotta be compensating for _something_ ,” Taako muses.  “He must think he’s the best asshole out there – no one will touch him.”

              “Simple enough to get into,” Lucretia adds.  “But…”

              “We’re gonna need a distraction,” Lup confirms.  Lucretia nods.

              Davenport chuckles.

              “Magnus, you take Taako and Merle up top.  Wait for the signal, then blow that skylight away.  Taako, you can handle the rest.  Merle, play lookout.”

              Davenport settles on Lup and Barry.

              “I need you two to be the distraction.”

              Lup salutes with a grin.

****

              Ebenezer’s mansion is obviously the biggest building in all of Hollyville.  Lup and Barry take their time strolling up the hillside, passing nicer and nicer houses, all bedecked in Candlenights regalia.  It’s nighttime, and the rest of Hollyville is dark and gloomy in comparison.

              They finally reach Ebenezer’s gate, which opens into a small courtyard beyond.  A buzzer sits beside an imposing intercom, and Lup gives Barry one final encouraging look before pressing the button.

              It takes a few seconds before the buzzer goes through, before a gruff voice answers.

              “Yeah?  Who is it, whaddya’ want?”

              “Yes, hello, is this the residence of one Mr. Ebenezer?” Lup tries to lighten her voice enough to sound innocent.  She catches Barry snickering behind his hand.

              “It’s the biggest place in Hollyville, ‘course it’s his place.  Who are _you_?”

              “Yes, my good sir, I am Greta Grimauldis, and this here is my dear sweet husband, Greg Grimauldis.  We’re here to petition Mr. Ebenezer for the rights to own a fine establishment such as - ”

              “Alright, come on in.”

              Lup cuts herself off, disappointed.  Barry laughs softly as they wait for the gate to open.

              “Grimauldis?” he prods.

              “Shut up, it was the first name I could think of.”

              “Oh, I love it.”

              The gate swings open, and they both step over the snowy courtyard.  To the sides, the brick walls loom over them.  Lup glances up, knowing the _Starblaster_ is waiting above the clouds to swoop down and rob Mr. Ebenezer of his goodies.

              The courtyard ends where the hulking mansion begins, and a set of massive oakwood double doors swings open.  They step inside to find a sprawling foyer, with three different staircases leading to three different places.  Sure enough, straight ahead of them is the vault, loud and proud and filled with treasure.  It’s sealed right now, and to the side a bored-looking security guard is watching a set of monitors around him.  Two other guards stand solemnly to the sides, and a fourth, well-dressed attendant comes hurrying up to the two of them.

              “Ms. Grimauldis?” His voice drawls, in a horrendously over the top way of establishing a sensation of dissatisfaction.  Lup daintily takes his hand.

              “Why _yes,_ here I am!  As I stated, this is my _husband_.”

              Before she can even urge him forward, Barry’s already there, enthusiastically shaking his hand.

              “Pleasure, my good sir, I am _Mr._ Grimauldis.”

              Lup struggles to keep from bursting out into laughter right then and there.  Barry’s usual gruff voice has been replaced by some alien high-pitched nasally cadence that makes Barry seem like an opera singer that’s sung too much falsetto.

              _Two can play at that game_.

              Immediately, she ups her own voice, from the lighter airy innocence from before to a haughty and stuck-up tone that she assumes someone like Mr. Ebenezer would adopt.

              “We’re here to ask Mr. Ebenezer about a potential holding in the area.”

              It’s Barry’s turn to stifle laughter.  The attendant looks at both of them strangely, before releasing each of their hands and gesturing them towards one of the staircases. Away from the vault.

              “Well, Mr. Ebenezer is upstairs in his study, if you must - ”

              “Oh, this vault is so _stunning_!”  She puts emphasis on the word as she runs over to it.  The guards on either end of the foyer straighten up and take a step forward, while the attendant desperately rushes after her.

              Barry’s behind her too, and he takes a step towards the monitor desk.  The guard glances up but doesn’t react.

              “So much security!” Barry notes.  “Tell me, what is in such a magnificent vault - ”

              “A _stupendous_ creation!” Lup adds.

              “ - what is inside that Mr. Ebenezer must flaunt that he keeps so secure?”

              The attendant, who is out of breath at this point, gathers himself.

              “ _That_ is Mr. Ebenezer’s private vault.  It contains all of his riches along with some more _personal_ materials of his possession.”

              The attendant gestures sternly towards the stairs.

              “Now, if you don’t mind - ”

              “But these _cameras_!” Lup admires, leaning over the desk.  The guard there stands, and Lup pulls her head back with a smile, but not before glimpsing a hint of the _Starblaster_ poking out from the clouds.  It was now or never.

              “These _pristine_ guards!” Barry adds.

              “This whole network of _impenetrable_ security!  How did you manage it?”

              Lup and Barry have settled back in front of the desk now, back to back, and all four other men in the room now have their eyes precisely on them.  Lup presses the stone of far speech hidden in her pocket, activating the signal.  The attendant desperately tries to shoo them back towards the stairs, but they won’t budge.

              He clears his throat.

              “It was an effort of great magnitude.  One can certainly say - ”

              A loud screaming sound echoes from behind the vault door, cutting the attendant off.  Before he can react, a massive explosion tears through the room, blowing the vault door off its hinges and sending everyone flying.

              Lup’s hand slips out of Barry’s, and the next thing she knows her head collides with something really, _really_ hard, and she’s out like a light.

****

              _Lup finds herself in a bed that’s way too soft to be her own on the_ Starblaster _.  The sheets are the sturdy soft cotton she’s always longed for, and the room around her is bigger.  There’s a hazy cloud of fog in the corners of it, but she feels content and peaceful here._

_A door opens, and in walks Barry.  He’s in his pajamas and he’s smiling, holding a breakfast tray in his hands.  His glasses are slightly askew, and it makes him look ten times cuter._

_“Hey!” he exclaims.  “You’re finally awake, sleepyhead.”_

_Lup feels a rush of affection, and here it’s not new and alien.  It feels comfortable and familiar._

_Barry walks over and sets the tray in front of Lup._

_“It’s not Taako’s cooking by any means, but I tried my best.  I think you’ll really like the bacon.”_

_It smells amazing.  She munches on the food and sinks back, taking it in.  Barry laughs, and it sounds magical._

_“Hey, Lup, I’ve been thinking.”_

_“Yeah?” She’s still in heaven over this delicious bacon._

_“I want you to know that I really care about you.  I want to make sure you’re happy.”_

_Without hesitation, Lup reaches out her hand and grasps Barry’s._

_“I want you to be happy too, doofus!” she exclaims.  He smiles at that._

_“Lup, I – I love you.  And I wanna make sure you feel the same before…”_

_He trails off.  This place, wherever it is, is making Lup say things she knows she wouldn’t normally say, but she doesn’t care.  Here, it’s nice, just them, and really_ really _good bacon._

_“I love you too, Barry.  I want you to know that.  I love you, and I can’t imagine doing any of this without you.”_

_Barry blushes and looks down at their hands, intertwined.  Lup tips his face back up, and they stare at each other.  There’s a piece of bacon in Lup’s other hand, but she forgets it, just for the moment, in an effort to memorize this, this piece of time, this fragile vulnerability that is her and Barry._

_And love._

_****_

“Lup!”

              Someone is calling her name from far away.

              “Lup, come on, please wake up!”

              Lup groans.  Her head hurts like, _a lot_ , and her vision is a bit blurry.  There’s a face close to hers.  It has glasses on.

              “Barry?” she mumbles.

              “Yeah, yeah, I’m here, now just _wake up_ , please!”

              There’s a lot of warmth coming from the other side of the room.  She hears yelling, sees flashing lights, senses some form of magic.

              _The vault_.

              Instantly, she sits bolt upright, which is a grave mistake.  Barry’s there to catch her as she sways a little bit.  She can see clearer now, though, and she sees the chaos in front of her.

              The vault, or what’s left of it, is on fire, burning in a blazing inferno.  In front of it, Magnus and Taako are fighting the attendant from earlier, seemingly the only survivor of the blast aside from Barry and Lup.  Merle, after a quick glance, is behind her, standing at the front door and talking earnestly with the crowd that has gathered there.

              “Not to worry, everyone, this is just a scheduled demolition!”

              “They’re fighting that man in there!” someone argues.

              “That’s just, uh…he’s a union worker!  Who got really excited, so much so he kind of…overthrew the operation.  But we’re dealing with him!  Everyone just relax!”

              The crowd is getting restless.

              “Where’s Dav?” Lup asks.

              There’s the telltale, almost silent, sound of the _Starblaster_.  The explosion tore a hole in the roof, and Lup can see now the helm of the ship floating a few feet above the wreckage of the vault.  The now familiar bright and hopeful shimmer that is the Light begins to slowly move towards the ship.  A ladder drops down into the building from above.

              “Hey, slowpokes!” Taako calls over.  “I think this man’s bloodied, shall we gooooo?”

              Barry helps Lup to her feet and calls over to Merle.  Merle salutes the crowd and, before they can say anything, runs back towards the burning vault and the _Starblaster_.  Barry and Lup join him, and all five of the crew scramble their way onto the ship.

              Davenport’s already at the bridge, whereas Lucretia is overseeing the safe recovery of the Light.  After a few tense seconds she gives Davenport a thumbs up, and they take off into the sky, leaving Ebenezer’s house in burning shambles behind them.

              They all retreat to the bridge, where Davenport is panting slightly.

              “That, uh, could have gone better.”

              “Hey, we got the Light!” Magnus argues.

              “We, uh, we kinda blew up all his cash, though,” Merle adds dejectedly.  Magnus casts an accusatory glare over at Taako.

              “Not my fault!” he yells.  “You said I was dropping the bomb on _three_ , you only counted to two - ”

              “Because I wanted you to drop it _on three_!”

              “ _On three_ means you say _three_ and then drop it, my dude!”

              “Hey, it’s okay, though, right?” Barry asks.  “Our goal was to devalue Ebenezer, I’m pretty sure blowing up all his shit counts.”

              “But what about Candlenights?” Lup frowns.  “We were gonna use that cash to help Hollyville.”

              There’s a pause.  Lucretia is smiling.

              “Well…” she begins.

              “While you were gone…” Davenport adds with a sneaky grin.

              “We kind of stole Candlenights from…everywhere.”

              Lup blinks and looks over the edge of the deck.  Sure enough, the rest of the upper hill of Hollyville seems distinctly void of all of its Candlenights cheer.  Lucretia laughs and walks over to the hatch leading down into the hold.

              “Care to help me with this?”

              She ducks down, only to emerge with tinsel in her hands.  Yards and yards of tinsel strung out along tons of garlands.  There are ornaments too, and lights, and stockings, and candles, and _presents_.  Presents of all shapes and sizes, wrapped perfectly and pristinely.

              Lup looks around at everyone else.

              “Who wants to be Terry?”

              “The nondenominational gift delivery dragon?” everyone else chimes back, in the sing-song way they know.  Lup grins.

****

              They spend the night flying through Hollyville, sprinkling it with tinsel, attaching decorations wherever they can, affixing festive candles to all the lampposts, and most importantly, leaving presents by each and every door that they could find.  For one night, the _Starblaster_ crew becomes the Star King, the ship his sleigh.

              They retreat as the sun starts to rise, and they find a quiet park, now recently decorated with Candlenights lights all over the evergreens, to dock the _Starblaster_ and wait for everyone in the town to wake up.

              The whole crew is silent.

              The sound is glad, and merry, and every word for sheer happiness there is.  They can hear children screaming in joy, parents with bewilderment, and a rush of the first true happiness Hollyville probably has had in a very long time.

              The park isn’t that far away, and it is only a matter of time before everyone finds them.  Daniel is there first, with Millie, and everyone else at the bar.  They’re carrying candles in their hands – everyone is, and the trail of light that leads to the park is a sight to see.

              The celebration is large and proud.  Someone sets up a small band that begins to play, and the crew mingle with the citizens of Hollyville as the morning continues on.

              After the initial wave of thank yous dies down, Lup is left to her own to the side, watching people dancing to the festive music.

              Barry approaches her from the side.

              “Hey, Lup.”

              “Hey, Barry.”

              They both lean against a small wooden fence behind them, side by side.  She can sense a hesitation between them, and she tries to ignore it.

              “Lup, I - ”

              Barry is running a hand through his hair.

              “I don’t know how to say this, but…remember you got knocked out?  During the heist?”

              Lup nods.

              “Well, I, um…you talk in your sleep.”

              Lup stares.

              “And I, uh, I kinda heard everything you said.”

              _Jeffandrew, why, why is this happening._

              “Y’know, Lup, I - ”

              Barry steps in front of Lup this time.  He’s still fidgeting with his hands, wringing them out in front of him.

              “I want – no.  I _need_ to know.  Do you – do you _really_ feel that way?  Was this all a joke, or do you really…?”

              He’s staring at the ground, blushing, and _fuck_ he looks so cute right now.

              Lup takes a step towards him, closing the gap.

              “Barry, I - ”

              He looks up, just briefly, and the hope in his eyes keeps her going.

              “Yes.  Yes, I - ”

              The band stops playing their upbeat songs and abruptly switches to a slower waltz.  Lup takes the moment to grab Barry’s hand and lead him out onto the dance floor.  He goes with her, silently, entranced somehow by the moment, by _her_.

              They settle into a position, with his hand on her waist, her hand on his shoulder.  And they start dancing, falling into a smooth and graceful pattern, and Lup briefly wonders if this wasn’t also one of the Light’s many different ideas, a plane in which she and Barry dance competitively, or if this was just _this_ , just them, just dancing.  Their movements echoing the connection between them.

              She brings her head down towards his ear, still dancing, and she whispers softly.

              “Yes, Barry.  I think – I think I’ve known for a while now.  Everything – all of these lives that we’ve led.  I think they were there to show me this.  And I understand if you don’t want me, if this isn’t what you want, but I - ”

              Fluidly, without breaking the flow of their waltz, Barry leans up and kisses Lup.  Lup closes her eyes and lets Barry guide her.  Her feet are moving below her but all she can think of is flying.  This isn’t surprising.  It’s magical.  It’s perfect.  It feels right, like this is exactly what she was meant for, all of these cycles, all of this time.

              Lup and Barry.

              Together.

              Something cold touches her forehead, and she breaks away in time to look up and see a gentle wave of snow fluttering down from the sky.  Barry bursts into a grin at the sight, and Taako comes running over with a snowball he obviously magicked into existence.

              “Look out, lovebirds!” he calls, before launching it at their heads.  Barry ducks, leaving Lup to get decked by the snow.  Taako chuckles and runs away to chuck another at Lucretia.

              Barry helps dust the snow off of Lup’s robes before giving her another gentle kiss on the cheek.

              “Happy Candlenights, Lup,” he whispers, before resting his head on her shoulder.

              “Happy Candlenights, Barry.”

              She leans her head against his, and she feels their hands wind themselves together.  They gaze out on Hollyville, the town where they stole Candlenights, and found each other.  And as the snow falls slowly down, Lup thanks the Star King for, honestly, the best gift she could have ever gotten.


End file.
